Believe Spin Off: Entwined Intervention
by Detroness
Summary: "At the end of the day, all we can do is believe; it's all we ever do." A Levi x Titan Shifter Reader x Eren Another possiblity on how Believe could have started out.
1. Part One

_Believe_

_Entwined Intervention_

_Part One_

_A Levi x Titan Shifter Reader x Eren Story_

_Reader's Point of View_

_Believe Spin Off: Entwined Intervention Part One (c) Detroness: Do not copy, edit, or repost. _

_Attack on Titan (c) Hajiime Isayama_

**¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸**

The sun feels warm and the breeze feels cool as you run through the plains on all fours, once in a while you'll get this urge to expend pent up energy and usually you do this by running across the plains. However expending energy is not the only reason why you're out running, earlier you spotted red flares high in the sky. Another expedition, but at the rate that these flares are being sent into the sky is startling…

It triggered a nagging feeling in the back of your mind, and you've been chasing the various flares that shoot into the sky. The steady rhythm of electrical waves pulse against your tail, a titan is nearby, that much is for certain. Even if you didn't have your tail, you can still feel the quakes from another titan that has likely been the cause of all the uproar from the Survey Corps.

From your vantage point, several squads of Corps Members are riding across the plain and away from a titan; which you presume is the one that's causing all the commotion. Its figure is that of a healthy human woman except that all of the Female Titan's skin is nowhere to be found, instead all of her muscles are defined and exposed and the Female Titan possesses chin length, blonde hair. A glimmer of recognition sparks in the back of your mind and you pick up your pace…

You squint at the various markings of muscle along the titan's body and that sparks ignites into a flame' you've 'met' this titan before…

A snarl curls at your lips as memories of pain flare into your tail and along your spine, causing a slight break in your stride. The last time you encountered this titan resulted in you making a hasty retreat from your old sanctuary… She attacked you out of nowhere and brutally crushed the bones of your tail in several spots along your spine as well as rendered your right arm completely useless by shattering the elbow. Your body recovered of course, but your pride and the untouched simmer of revenge hasn't recovered…

An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth as the saying goes after all…

You throw your weight back and come to a skidding halt, your hands and feet make deep trenches as your momentum slows down. After you've come to a complete stop, you rear up onto your hind legs and peer out onto the open plains. Finally you're able to spot, of what looks like, the head of the expedition and you hit the ground running again on all fours.

The plains are a sparse landscape that is hardly favors the Survey Corps when they have to kill titans, but there is an occasional grove of giant trees throughout the landscape. That's also where the head of expedition seems to be heading, and it's most likely the most logical and strategic choice at this moment. Not only does it look like they have endured heavy losses, but they are at a severe disadvantage on the open plains when facing ordinary titans. Facing an intelligent titan is another matter entirely…

If they plan on confronting the Female Titan in that grove, then that's where you need to be.

With narrowed eyes, your muscles surge forward and you easily catch up and bypass the head of the expedition. In on time, you reach the grove but instead of following the dirt path that leads straight into the forest you veer around the grove and enter around the back, so you're actually running towards the head of the expedition.

Slowing down your pace to a trot, and observe your surrounding in the giant forest for someplace to lie in wait for the Female Titan. It will have to be around the main road because even with your maneuverability this particular grove is a slight challenge for even you to navigate between the trees and this titan probably won't fare any better than you maneuvering through the trees. The only place spacious enough to fight or defend as a titan would be on the main path; it's wide enough to maneuver through and the lowest branches of the trees reach far above a 15 meter class titan's head.

Finally you come upon the main road that seems to run through the heart of the forest and keep trotting in the direction of the Survey Corps. Upon inspection, you notice that the large trunks make it difficult to see what's past the initial tree line against the road. You suppose it could be a spot where you could ambush the Female Titan but a Survey Corp member is specifically looking for titans and where else would you find titans? Certainty not up in the trees… A scoff like sound escapes your titan form's throat.

That last thought makes you halt in mid step and your ears perk up at the thought. These trees certainty look sturdy enough to support a titan's weight and the branches themselves are thick enough to support your weight as well as hide your body if a member of the corps were to look straight up.

Resuming your trot, you finally find the perfect spot. Large undergrowth surrounds the large tree trunks which is enough to hide any supply carriages that the Survey Corps are bringing with them. The overhead branches are thick with foliage and you brush your tail against the dirt path but you doubt that the Survey Corps will be looking directly at the ground for any signs of titan activity; it doesn't hurt to be cautious.

You step off the road and maneuver about 30 meters away from a bridge, while that is the ideal spot, it would be unfortunate if you miscalculated and missed your target and landed in the midst of the Survey Corps.

You find another thick tree trunk and rear back up onto your hind legs, and settle a hand onto the bark of the tree. You're currently at the back of the tree, if someone looked at the tree from the vantage point of the road. Climbing a tree is good idea and all but it would be utterly useless if you left claw marks where you scaled the tree where everyone can see.

The claws on your left foot grip into the bark and your right arm extends upward and your claws harshly bite into the bark of the tree. With one push, your surge upward against gravity and slowly begin to scale the tree in a feline fashion. Halfway up the trunk, you increase your pace as you ease into the regiment of climbing a tree.

You climb past the leafless branches and continue upwards where even the dense foliage makes it difficult for you to navigate through. You pause in your climb and consider your options; either you continue up this tree and leave signs of your presence or leap to the tree on your right which has the foliage further up the trunk.

Without hesitation, you leap upwards from the tree you're currently perched in and latch onto the other tree. Quickly you resume your pace and finally you're at the height where you need to be in order to ambush your prey.

Your carefully settle yourself on a thick branch and crouch against the bark and prepare to leap back to the original tree. The muscles in your iris contract and your pupils enlarge themselves as you push yourself off the tree. You grapple against the bark of the tree and settle down against the bark and wait. Not only does the thick foliage hide most of your body from view but heavy grey clouds paint the blue sky and create shadows within the forest.

Minutes trickle by and finally you see the head of the expedition riding on the road, your muscles stiffen and you lie completely still despite the anxious pulse of your blood pumping through your veins. To your immense relief, they continue down the road without a sign of knowing that you are perched up in a tree. More minutes trickle by and the supply wagons pass underneath your perch and then join the head of the expedition beyond the bridge. More minutes trickle by and the supply wagons pass underneath your perch and then join the head of the expedition beyond the bridge. Your ears twitch as you hear the commotion coming from where the Corps have set themselves up.

That's when the faint electrical pulse of the Female Titan throbs against your tail ever so slightly, however it's still unpleasant because the each pulse, no matter how small, sends a shockwave up your spine which makes you have the urge to fidget uncomfortably on your perch. Despite this urge, you only allow the tips of your fingers and toes to twitch occasionally once in a while whenever a particularly strong pulse hits your tail.

Your eyes scan your surroundings for any changes and you freeze when a blonde haired man sporting in a mustache and a beard that's flying towards your tree. Finally he lands several branches below your position and your ears twitch when you hear him sniffing the air and your half tempted to make a hasty retreat but the arrival of another blonde haired man stops you. With a slight movement of your head, your right eye stares at them through the thick leaves of your hiding spot. The second blonde haired man is vaguely familiar to you, especially those caterpillar eyebrows…

"Smell anything, Mike?" Caterpillar asks.

"Only traces of titans, Erwin." Mike replies.

The last word of Mike's sentence almost knocks you off your branch… How could you forget Erwin? You helped him grow from a trainee to a soldier after all…

Focusing back onto the conversation… Mike can smell titans? How unusual and what's even more unusual is the fact that he doesn't smell you, ignoring the fact that you are quite literally on top of them… But it does make sense in a way; normal titans, especially those who've recently fed, have this heavy stench surrounding their bodies like a noxious cloud.

Another human, a brown haired woman wearing a pair of glasses, flies up to meet with Erwin and Mike.

"Hanji, are the traps in place?" Erwin asks the new arrival without breaking his stare away from the direction of the entrance of the forest.

"Yes Commander." Hanji replies. Your ears perk up at this; commander? How fitting.

Erwin simply hums, nods, and then looks over his shoulder at the both of them. "Let's get into position," With a bang, a black flare is sent flying above the treetops, "We cannot afford to make any more mistakes."

The three fly off to where the rest of the Survey Corps expedition are lying in wait and you refocus your attention back on the fading black flare. It appears that the Female Titan is now in the forest, but then again you didn't need a flare to tell you that…

Slowly and carefully, you settle yourself back into your original position and breathe in a deep breath and then slowly exhale with your eyes closed, which ultimately relaxes your entire body. If your body is too tense from the rush of adrenaline mixed with anticipation for the hunt, then that very boost could ultimately lead to the hunt failing.

The electrical pulses are more frequent and stronger now, and your sensitive ears can pick out the sound of fighting and thunderous footsteps within the forest. All too soon it seems that another squad arrives but this time, they have an unwelcome visitor following them…

There are six members in the squad and currently the Female Titan is rapidly gaining ground… Now or never. Their screams can be heard by your acute ears over the footfalls of the Female Titan but you ignore them and focus on your prey. A crazed look is painted in the Female Titan's uncovered eye, but you don't miss the fact that she's entirely focused on the squad in front of her.

Time slows to a crawl for you as the squad begins to pass underneath your tree as you slowly rise from your position on the branch. What you presume to be the squad leader looks over his shoulder and fires an ear piercing sound wave into the air with his flare gun… Your eyes widen even further as you begin to push yourself out of the tree…

Before your prey can even begin to comprehend what's happening, your claws shred through her right shoulder and down her arm as your hind claws dig into the dirt in an effort to slow both of you down. With the combination of her lack of awareness to her surroundings, your surprise attack from the tree, and the momentum you both carry the result is exactly what you wanted as both of you, more or less, come to a stop…

Your prey tumbles forward and rolls a good distance away, while you dig your heels deeper into the ground and gather your bearings as you steady yourself back up.

To your luck, the squad continues riding down the road until they pass the ambush but now you have a larger problem to deal with…

Your eyes snap back to your prey and your muscles coil and then spring as you launch yourself at her right arm again but this time your tail constricts around her legs and upper body in mere moments as your claws slice through more of her flesh.

However to your surprise, she lands an unexpected blow to your chest that knocks you back and causes your tail to loosen its grip. Momentarily stunned you reel back a few unsteady steps in order to gain your bearings. Untangled and seemingly unopposed, the Female Titan lunges towards you with a raised fist and throws it towards your face.

Your irises contract and your pupils widen to their fullest as the battle slows down to a mere crawl for you. Using this precious time, you examine all the details that you can see: a few Corps members are flying around the battle, specifically the ones that the Female Titan was chasing, and there is also the detail that the Female Titan is specifically using the same arm that you injured just moments before…

Your eyes narrow and your previously stumbling feet plant themselves firmly into the ground, one in front of the other, as you relax your arms in order to perform the maneuver that you plan on performing… Angling your body to the left, your opponent's punch only meets the soft cushion of air; at the same time, you step back and your right arm snags out onto the titan's extended arm and your left arm is thrust out, palm first, against the elbow of your opponent.

With a sickening crack, the bone shatter as you follow through by pulling her forward with the aid of her own momentum and you throw out your foot and smash it against hers, effectively tripping her with your sharp talons.

Before she can hit the ground, your tail quickly replaces the arm you had snagged onto her as you free your hand to help defend yourself from the Corps members that are flying closer to the fight. At the same time, you raise your right leg up and then smash the ball of your right foot brutally against her spine. Your talons dig into her spine, immobilizing her for the time being, as the muscles in your tail coil and with a simple flick, you twist her forearm in a complete circle and then tear it clean off from the rest of her limb and flick it away.

"Wait Olou! Don't engage that titan!" A female voice pulls your attention away from your opponent and you raise your head away from your prey and zero in on the humans.

In the corner of your eyes, you can see a dirty blonde haired man flying towards your neck with his swords armed. The rest of the squad is further behind him and you note that they are missing one member… Despite that detail, your main concern is Olou as you turn your upper body to face him…

However, your opponent takes advantage of your lack of attention and twists around and whips her left arm around, successfully connecting a bone shattering blow to your ankle. A pained snarl rips from your lips as you stumble away from your prey… That hit severely slows you down as the Female Titan kicks you away.

Your talons dig into the ground but never the less, you crash into a tree. Using your disorientation to her advantage, the Female Titan turns tail and continues down her former path. Your keen vision is able to pick out the tiny movements of her head; she's looking for something or someone…

She momentarily stiffens in your enhanced vision and locks onto a target; you follow her gaze and see a brown haired boy with emerald green eyes that shine with agony, despair, and horror. To his luck and to her misfortune, he's safely behind the ambush and no sooner have you gotten back onto your feet then do the Survey Corps spring the trap.

After several explosions, she's effectively trapped but she still protects her nape with only her left hand but you can see the crystallization taking place on her hand and on the nape of her neck. Your shattered ankle has slightly repaired itself as you fully stand up to your height and no sooner are you confronted with that same squad…

They fly towards you and you wait until the last moments before you drop down on all fours and bound away through the forest, taking complicated turns and sometimes even using the trees as springboards to help launch yourself to the next tree…

Shouts of amazement follow you as you head deeper into the forest and away from the scene.

You plan to come back of course… You haven't finished the hunt yet; and despite seemingly being captured, you know that it isn't over until your opponent's six feet under the ground so to speak….

_¸,ø ¤º° Time Skip °º¤ ø_

You've already doubled back towards the Female Titan's location but a deafening screech stops you in your tracks. Your tail hums with electrical pulses and you growl in frustration and then climb up into the trees and it seems that just in the nick of time too…

Hordes of titans rush through the forest beneath you and deeper into the forest, where you presume the Female Titan still is…

With a surge of muscles, you leap from tree to tree and eventually find your way to the Female Titan but unfortunately a crowd has already arrived too…

The many titans that rushed into the forest are now devouring the body of the Female Titan and you're already a reasonable distance away from them; however you're too close to the Survey Corps…

Mike is the first one to spot you resting in the treetops, and you make out his mouth move to form Erwin's name. Instantly everyone's attention is towards you and your tail twitches slightly but it's a standoff between gazes.

Your ears perk up as you eavesdrop on the conversation over the titans' feast below.

"Commander? Your orders?" Mike asks with a shadowed look over his eyes and sweat covering his brow.

Erwin stares at you and you return his stare and for the longest time, no one dares to even make the first move.

"My orders remain the same. Retreat. As of right now, we have suffered too many casualties to attempt to try and retrieve any information and I'm not willing to risk any more than we have to in this situation."

You blink and slowly nod in acknowledgement and then push yourself off your perch and land back down on all fours. Stunned shouts are heard from the Survey Corps in the trees but Erwin simply shouts his orders again and you hear the Survey Corps retreating away from the scene.

With a bound, you're off back into the forest in a trot and you're determined to get as far away as possible from the other titans before they decide to make a meal out of you…

Already you're heading further into the interior of the forest when you hear the resonating crack and hiss of a flare being fired into the sky. Digging your heels into the ground, you come to a halt and stand back up on your hind legs and search the sky. The flare is behind you, from the general direction of the remains of the Female Titan…

With narrowed eyes, you search for the second flare that you fear will fly into the sky… Another crack confirms your fears, and you hit the ground running on all fours towards the second flare. Currently you're too far Southwest of the second flare, but you push yourself North towards it but you don't venture any further East.

If the Female Titan is within the Survey Corps, she can easily spot your massive form within the treetops and most likely she'll want to take the most direct route to the second flare…

You surge your muscles forward and steam rushes from your mouth, as your muscles are worked into overdrive. Your massive heart works faster to pump blood throughout the network of veins throughout your body as you draw in massive amounts of air to fuel the oxygen deprived blood cells that rush to replenish your nutrient deprived muscles.

Already you've caught up with the second flare's location and you can see the squad flying through the trees; it's the same squad that the Female Titan was chasing after but you notice several crucial details…

The major fact that they're squad leader is apparently missing sends a prickle of unease through your body; even the most stable soldiers would crumble without the backbone of the squad leader to support them.

However it seems that even with your speed, you've arrived too late….

You dig in your heels as the Corps Member, Olou, is kicked brutally away by the Female Titan who safely lands back onto the ground. Slowly you stand back up onto your hind legs, as the world slows down but this time it's not because of your eyes…

Your gaze follows the carnage the Female Titan has caused and your momentarily freeze in shock but the cry of horror snaps you out of your daze. Both your attention and the Female Titan's is drawn to the owner of the cry; it's the same green eyed boy who she is after, currently flying towards both of you and the remains of the squad…

For the briefest of moments, he seems to float in the air as the beginnings of tears gather at the corners of his eyes…

The calm before the storm.

"I'm gonna…. Kill her!" He shouts out and then raises his hand towards his mouth and practically tears into the flesh. With a flash of light and the roar of thunder, another titan appears in the place of where the emerald eyed boy was.

It roars with agony laced in its voice and you pause for a moment and assess the possible new threat to you. Its teeth are exposed and its face possesses a distinctly skull appearance with no flesh or muscle on its cheeks. However it possesses those same emerald eyes as the boy does, but shoulder length black hair adorns its head instead of the boy's brown hair.

It lands onto the ground and its whole body is thrown forward from the fall as but it hardly loses momentum as it charges towards the Female Titan. However she is more nimble than he expected as she easily evades his punch and maneuvers around and lands a harsh blow to his torso. Spittle flies from his mouth and for the first time, it seems that he notices you standing farther away from the battle.

Your eyes widen at his lack of attention and the Female Titan snaps her arm out and sends him crashing to the ground. He roars again, attention refocused on the Female Titan and you slink towards the fight. They seem evenly matched with one another on basic understanding of fighting but you can tell from the differentiating stances that they are not equal on advanced fighting skills.

There is also the crucial fact that the Female Titan still has control of her emotions while her opponent does not, but she has sorely discounted one factor that could cost her the gamble… You.

The other titan regains his footing and swings another punch at the Female Titan as you draw nearer still towards the fight, often evading out of the Female Titan's vantage point since she still does not have the entire field of vision due to only having only one eye. This one connects but just barely as the Female Titan crashing into a tree and the other titan is left heavily panting for breath.

Muscles tensed you lie, uneasily, away from the fight as the other titan once again lunges and throws punch after punch that the Female Titan continually avoids until he manages to send her flying through the air but she catches herself and charges off away from your position with the other titan hot on her heels.

With a growl, you charge after them both but making sure to keep your distance. Punch after punch, the other titan continues to expend his energy while the Female Titan continually dodges each punch with ease until you flick out your tail and trip her. Her eyes widen as she falls backwards on the ground and the other titan pins her down and raises his left arm high in the air and aims it at her face. However she easily evades the hit but with a sickening snap, the other titan's arm is severally damaged around the elbow and the muscles in his hand are nearly gone.

He pauses and your tail twitches.

Again he raises his right arm and smashes it against the ground but this time the hand falls limply off to the side as he sits up. His eyes narrow and he roars at the Female Titan pinned under him and then rears back up and to convulse erratically.

Your eyes narrow at the scene and you fight the urge to snap out with your tail and knock some sense into the other titan.

He stops and glares down at the Female Titan and you creep closer still…

However what happens next is what neither of you could predict…. Faster than both of you can comprehend, the Female Titan grapples her way out of the other titan's hold on her and kicks him away, but he comes back again full force and throws a brutal uppercut towards her face which she nearly dodges and rolls away from him. He tumbles to the ground and she regains her footing and looks back towards him.

Not yet.

However he lands in front of her and roars with his left arm raised high in the air and the Female Titan raises her left arm in order to defend herself. Her eyes widen for the briefest of seconds as the other titan lunges towards her and within seconds the Female Titan throws herself out of the way. His punch grazes the ground but he lunges after her throwing punch after punch and she continually dodges each throw with ease.

You nimbly maneuver behind the Female Titan's field of vision and continually maneuver your way into her blind spot.

A sickening crack grabs your attention and you see the other titan throw another punch at the Female Titan that knocks her high through the air and slumps back down against a tree. Easily she regains her footing and you can she her chest heave with effort as the other titan charges again at her. He crashes into the tree with his knee first and then rests briefly against it, panting heavily.

The Female Titan turns around calmly and faces the other titan who's still leaning against the tree and you notice that the bottom half of his jaw has been brutally torn or smash out. He freezes and you creep forward still…

A sickening crack and a tree falling down echo throughout the clearing followed by a two thuds against the ground and you narrow your eyes at the scene. The other titan's body slumps to the ground and his head has bounced slightly a ways back and the Female Titan slowly approaches the body.

Her jaw rips open and she tears through the flesh at the other titan's nape, revealing the boy inside before leaning down…

Now.

You leap out from your hiding place and knock her away from the boy and let out an earsplitting roar as you quickly grab the boy and run back through the trees. You carefully put the boy's clothes between your teeth as you hit the ground running on all fours and away from the Female Titan.

"Eren!"

You continue away from the Female Titan and the black haired girl only to dig your heels into the ground and whip your tail around. Your body twists around and you spot the girl just feet away from you and you toss up the boy with a quick jerk of your head.

Her face contorts in surprise before she regains her composure and quickly catches him and flies off.

Unfortunately that's the last thing you see, before white hot pain cuts through your nape and everything turns black…


	2. Part Two

_Believe_

_Entwined Intervention_

_Part Two_

_A Levi x Titan Shifter Reader x Eren Story_

_Reader's Point of View_

_Believe Spin Off: Entwined Intervention Part Two (c) Detroness: Do not copy, edit, or repost. _

_Attack on Titan (c) Hajiime Isayama_

**¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸ ¸,ø ¤º°°º¤ ø,¸**

The first thing that you're aware of is the hard wooden surface that you're lying against and the pounding of horses' hoofs repeatedly hitting the ground. The next thing you notice is the subtle weight of cloth covering your recovering body; you don't dare move a muscle however, mainly due to your weakened state, but also because you would rather be thought to be unconscious so that your chances of a surprise escape are higher.

Slowly you can feel your muscles recovering; tendons stretching and connecting various muscles back together, and bones are cementing underneath your skin and ever so slowly you are regaining muscle mass and are steadily recovering.

All in all it seems relatively peaceful on the way back…

"Titans!"

Son of a bitch…

Your eyes slowly open and you blink several times, adjusting to the bright light.

"Hey!" You look towards the voice and see a dirty blonde haired boy riding a brown horse. His eyes are narrowed and his forehead is covered in a thin sheet of sweat. Slowly you are able to stand up in the moving wagon but you have to heavily lean on the railing of the wagon otherwise you'd lose your footing. With a tired gaze, you stare out at the rest of the expedition behind you. Further behind your wagon are the last remnants of the expedition… as well as several titans who are quickly gaining ground.

You squint against the evening sun in your eyes and you fine pick through the details; several members are on horseback, one even has a limp body being carried over his shoulders, and another wagon is further ahead of the members on horseback. To your surprise, the body plummets to the ground without a care and disappears underneath the titan's foot and you see another member being pick up by the second titan.

A frown form on your face as the story falls into place; he must have wanted to retrieve his friend's body but inadvertently drew the titans here as well… Noble but utterly careless and immature.

With shaky limbs, you continue to make your way to the end of the wagon, "What the hell are you doing?" The same boy snaps at you.

Your gaze slides towards him and he flinches from the dead look in your eyes, "Saving your sorry asses, what else?"

He stutters to make a comeback but you promptly ignore him; now or never…

Unopposed, you dive, headfirst, off the wagon but you make sure to gouge your hand against the rough surface. Pain rushes through your hand and you can feel blood trickling from the small wound, but it's enough to get the job done…

The air warps around you and electricity hums on the surface of your tongue as you begin to transform… The skeletal structure of your titan plants itself firmly on the ground in a kneeling position and another ripple of energy hums through the skeleton. Your muscles race around the skeleton, quickly working to cover the exposed skeleton underneath while the tendons stretch taut as they join the various muscles. The bones of your tail lie on the ground dormant while your flesh races to knit together the bones and soon enough you're able to move your tail back and forth.

Your senses register in your mind as you open your eyes and stand up on all fours and then charge out towards the titans. Various members scatter around your massive frame in awe, but with a huff you jump over them and charge out towards the end of the expedition and the titans.

By the time you reach the end of the expedition, one of the titans have already fallen to the ground but another has a Corps member in its grubby hands with its gaping maw open and ready to devour the human. Your muscles surge and you leap upwards and towards the titan, and tackle it to the ground but with uncanny speed you snatch the human from its grasp and then leap off.

Gently you set the human down before you return your attention to the titan sitting in front of you: its wiry arms hug its malnourished torso and a stupid looking grin is plastered on its scrunched face as it rocks its back and forth in almost a comforting manner, but coming from a titan, the action simply looks mocking or more like the titan is holding back uncontrolled laughter.

Your eyes narrow and you twist your body around, so that you're facing away from the titan, and you swing your tail back and then swing it forward towards the titan…

A sickening rip and crunch can be heard as your tail cleanly decapitates the titan and sends the head flying over the plains. You raise you tail high in the air and then smash it down onto the titan's nape and then steam rises from its body. Your tail lingers in the air, threateningly, but you slowly pull it back down and trot back to the Survey Corps members. It doesn't take long since some of the members are cautiously approaching you, but the first one who steps off his horse is the same one who cut you out of your titan form the first time.

His steel gray eyes cut through yours but regardless you meet his piercing glare head on without wavering. With a sigh, you slowly lower your body onto the ground to the point where your stomach hits the ground and then you pull your hair away from your nape and present it to him by tilting your head vertical to the ground and towards him.

Moments tick by and then you hear more Survey Corps members approach your prone body, cautiously but they still do regardless. The tip of your tail twitches as you feel the fast approach of pounding hoofs, and unease prickles your spine but you resist moving in any way.

"Erwin: your orders?"

"Cut her out, Levi" You note that Erwin's voice is calm and you force yourself to relax as memories of a time when you both were younger resurface into your mind.

You close the eyes of your titan form and the eyes of your human body as you feel Levi's footsteps come closer and closer towards your neck. The tip of the blade gently touches your nape and you resist the urge to flinch in fear, knowing that you might inadvertently kill someone with the slightest movement of your massive limbs.

It rests there for a moment… Then the cold steel slices cleanly through the flesh of your nape. Your human body shivers as warmth escapes from the cocoon of flesh and you hear gasps of amazement from all around you. From that past experience, you assume that the world would have faded into darkness as the eyelids of your titan form would have fluttered closed.

However the world is already dark to your perspective as a titan, but your other senses still send signals to the brain found in your titan form that then transmits those signals to the brain inside your skull. The very last signals that are sent to your human brain are that from your titan's form brain and from years of experience you easily decode and decipher them to translate into signals of safety. There are no titans within a distance of about 9 or 10 mile radius from your current position and they aren't giving any signals that they're about to chase after the Survey Corps anytime son.

Just the small pulsations of the humans that surround your body and that thought in itself is self-assuring.

Two thin, but lean arms wrap around your torso and begin to tug you out of the remains of the cocoon that still encases most of your lower body. Finally after a few tugs, you're outside of your titan form for the second time and you can hear several people fearfully whispering with each other.

But you can also pick out a particular stride making their way towards your prone position; Erwin…

The clattering of his 3D gear gives you the faint idea that he's kneeling beside you and that's when you feel two of his calloused fingers brush away your waist length hair and gently settle against your jugular.

"[Name]? Can you hear me?" Erwin asks calmly but you can hear a faint trace of concern laced within his otherwise flat tone.

The muscles in your cheeks stretch and remold themselves into their proper place in order for you to regain the use of your eyes. In the background you can hear multiple gaps and a delighted squeal and then someone hushing that said squealer. Soon enough, the muscles have all properly realigned themselves and you slowly open your eyes and blink a few times in order to adjust to the light.

"Hello Squad Leader Erwin, or should I address you as Commander Erwin now?" You calmly ask; as if the passage of time, 5 years or more, hasn't passed between you two like elusive grains of sand slipping through your fingers and that it's just a normal conversation during an afternoon at the Survey Corps headquarters.

"Erwin?" Mike asks from off of the Commander's side. Suspicion is laced on his face but there is also a faint glimmer of recognition there as well.

From your memories, you remember that Mike would occasionally see you once or twice, maybe three times a day, while you were a squad leader and while both Erwin and Mike were simple soldiers amongst the Scouting Legion.

Of course, Erwin had been put, briefly, under your charge until he was swept up into the status of another squad leader. Mike remained another soldier despite his friend's rise to status amongst the Legion and regardless Erwin still enjoyed your company.

Most often, you two would spar with each other at the end of days filled with mountains of paper work that you both needed to escape from. Other times on peaceful days, he would be a formidable opponent whenever you two would engage in a game of chess.

The harsh glare of the sun brings you back into reality as you stare into Erwin's sea blue, but otherwise flat, eyes. For a moment more, you can see the seas within his eyes swim with unanswered questions.

"I promise that I will answer all of your questions to the best of my ability, Erwin. As well as cooperate in any way possible." You solemnly promise.

Erwin holds your stare for the longest time and then he blinks and looks back over his shoulder at Mike.

"Mike. Rally the rest of the Legion; we need to keep moving."

Mike nods and then goes off and starts to disperse the crowd gathering around your weakened, and to your chagrin, apparently naked form.

Erwin stands up and walks away but not before casting one last look at you over his shoulder. He remounts his white horse and steers it towards you and your current support, which you assume is Levi.

"Levi: help [Name] back onto the wagon and then take your position back at the rearguard."

"Tch."

Levi shifts underneath you and readjust you so that you're resting in his arms, bridal style. However due to your recent transformation and the concentration of healing the muscles in your face, other parts of your body are slow to recover.

Basically that means you're currently slumping down into Levi's arms…

"Tch. Sit up, you shitty brat." He states as he readjusts you in his arms again.

"I can't." You reply in the same tone.

He pauses and looks down at you with a bored, almost exasperated, look on his face.

"Why the fuck not?"

"I focused healing the muscles in my cheeks, so the healing process of my arms is going to be slower until I can get my metabolism back up to speed."

"Tch. What a shitty excuse." He continues on his wagon and hauls you back onto the wagon and then turns away.

Another member helps you sit against the back of the wagon and covers your bare body with their cloak with an embarrassed blush on their face.

"Oi brat!"

You look up from the cloak and stare at Levi with a blank face. "Yes?"

"Don't pull another shitty stunt like that again, got it?"

You simply nod and then lean back, further, against the wagon and a sigh escapes your lips.

This is going to be a long way home…

_¸,ø ¤º° Time Skip °º¤ ø_

The rest of the ride is fortunately, and predictably much calmer and easier. Still you don't expect a warm welcome when you return….

The boy beside you, the other 'titan shifter', is motionless and still fast asleep but you give it a moment… His eyes snap open and he sits up and gazes around just as the expedition reaches the walls but his gaze goes right through you and then he asks, "Mikasa. What happened to the Female Titan?"

The girl, Mikasa, hesitates for a moment and glances at you out of the corner of her eye. But from the boy's point of view, he probably thinks that she's just looking at him.

"The expedition failed; we were unable to capture the Female Titan."

He gapes in shock and slumps down next to you in the wagon. The wagon shifts again and makes its way into the safety of the walls where, you know from experience, a pit of snakes is waiting for you and the rest of the Legion.

You close your eyes and tune out the whispers of the people; it's not worth letting them kick you while you're down.

However your wagon mate is far from content with these whispers and you crack open an eye to see him struggle to stand up. Your arm reaches out and you clasp him firmly on his shoulder, he looks at you with surprise and you simply shake your head.

"The mission was not a complete failure." You quietly state and you let your hand slip from his shoulder, confident that you have his attention.

"Why do you say that?" He asks, sitting back down into the wagon.

"You found me, didn't you?"

Your rhetorical question jerks him out of his stupor and he nods numbly.

"Do not view this defeat as a hindrance; just another step we have to take in order to achieve the real goal here. But most of all," You lean towards him and your lips just graze his earlobe, "do not forget the fact that we are all still very alive right now; and that thought is a hopeful one."

You pull away and go back to staring straight ahead and the rest of the expedition lagging behind the wagon both you and Eren are sitting in. However you do catch a faint dust of pink laced in his cheeks out of the corner of your left eye.

With a quiet sigh, you close your eyes and tune everything out and slouch down onto your knees.

What an interesting turn of events… I wonder what will happen next, you think before you drift off into a sweet oblivion…


End file.
